Credit: DisneyBob Iger is presiding over a failing company, and his reward? Receiving a fake award for working for longer than he actually has.
If Bob Iger had stayed away from the leadership of The Walt Disney Company after his formal retirement as chief executive officer of the world’s most iconic entertainment company in 2021, he might have been considered one the most significant figures in the history of the House of the Mouse, spoken in nearly the same tone as founder Walt Disney and Disney Renaissance visionary Howard Ashman.
During his first tenure as CEO, Iger made high-risk, high-payoff moves, such as acquiring companies like Marvel Studios, Pixar Animation Studios, and Lucasfilm. He also massively expanded Disney Parks, which has become the company’s biggest asset sector, presiding over the openings of Hong Kong Disneyland Resort and Shanghai Disney Resort. All in all, his 15 years as CEO of Disney resulted in the company nearly quintupling its market value into triple-digit billion numbers.
Related: Bob Iger Sat Down for a Meeting with Walt Disney, and It Went About as Well as You’d Expect
However, Bob Iger did not stay away. After the Disney board of directors ousted his successor, Bob Chapek, Iger stepped back up to the plate as CEO and has been whiffing it ever since. Marvel, Lucasfilm, and Disney Animation have all been releasing one bomb after another. Disneyland and Disney World are being (accurately) accused of price-gouging Guests, and the ink on a legal settlement with Florida Governor Ron DeSantis is barely dry.
The Disney Disability Service (DAS) program has become enormously controversial, Guests are freaking out about what’s happening to Genie+, and while Iger survived a takeover attempt from billionaire Nelson Peltz, it also demonstrated how shareholder faith is shaken.
Disney CEO Bob Iger has a lot of work to do to restore the company to the heights at which he left it, and his main solution seems to be spending a whole bunch more money.
The executive has committed $60 billion to expand the company’s Experiences arm, with a staggering $17 billion of that going to the Disney World Resort in Orlando alone. In some ways, it’s hard to blame Iger; after all, it worked the first time, didn’t it?
Time will tell whether the billions that Bob Iger is throwing at the company will rejuvenate it, but no matter, he gets an award anyway. Specifically, Iger has been given (per Variety) a 50-year Service Award depicting Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs from the 1937 movie of the same name along with the inscription “Recognizing 50 magical years with The Walt Disney Company.”
There’s only one problem: Bob Iger has not been with Disney for 50 years.
Bob Iger has officially been a Disney employee since 1995, when the Mouse purchased the American Broadcast Company (ABC); at the time, he was president and CEO of Capital Cities/ABC, which owned the TV channel. At that point, he became a cast member, meaning that Iger has worked for Disney for 29 years. And that’s being generous and counting in his gap time between CEO gigs.
Related: Shocking Claim Made About Disney CEO Bob Iger’s Succession Plan
Officially, Disney is recognizing his employment with ABC since 1974 when he was hired as a set assistant. Let’s be real, though: in what world does working with one company that was purchased by another one because the FCC repealed the Financial Interest and Syndication Rules count for that?
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Bob Iger posted a picture of his award on Instagram with the caption:
“I started my career at ABC 50 years ago today and the business has certainly changed a lot since then! But at the end of the day, success still hinges on one thing: great storytelling. I’m proud to work alongside so many talented colleagues who create exceptional stories and experiences for the world to enjoy… truly the ride of a lifetime!”
Disney has a bad reputation for using fuzzy math to disguise its Hollywood accounting, but now, it seems that is extended to the actual passage of time. Anyway, congratulations, Mr. Iger.
Do you think Bob Iger deserves this award? Spout off below!